Weekly Recaps
Post-round write-ups from the commissioner
TONAWANDA, NY - The 2018 season had been a struggle for John Coyle as he’s had to deal with his debilitating skills, his deteriorating “Manship” with Shawn Conschafter, and the immediate success of his mentor, and 2018 PIH rookie, Mike Mondoux.
Coyle’s struggles were starting to take its toll on the group dynamics of the GI6 and PIH veteran, and outcast GI6 member, Scott Verost had seen enough. Verost, who seems to have a lot of time on his hands as of late, called for a mandatory group meeting at The Dome before the round.
It was then that Coyle spoke-up about his struggles and the attributing factors to his "crumble". Emotions were high (and Conschafter was wasted according to sources) as they realized the state of their good friend, Coyle. It was then that all the GI6 men rose and gave their fellow-member a group hug, an act that was, in a way, the group putting the pieces of crumbled Coyle back together again.
The group collected themselves and headed to the greens.
Despite shooting a pedestrian 20 on the front-9, Coyle for some reason was in great spirits as he approached hole-10. It was later revealed that his good spirits was attributed to the poor play of his playing partner, and league leader, Tom Barbops. Coyle was 1-stroke ahead of Barbops after 9-holes. Just enough motivation to put him over the top. Coyle took a hole in one on 9 and finished the back 9 with a 17, and a week-8 best 37 with one hole in one. Barbops finished with a 41 (1 HI1) and lost his 1st place standings.
“It feels good to be atop the leader-board again. This is where I belong” said a jovial Coyle after the round. “I’ve watched Mondoux take 3 jackets this year. I’ve let Conschafter drive my decision making this year and I don’t want to party like that anymore. Now that I am married with a kid on the way I need to settle my game down: my putting and my partying.” When asked how this will affect future activities and alliances among the GI6, Coyle hinted at what the future may look like as he replied with “It’s me and Mondoux from here!” Coyle made an early exit from The Dome as Conschafter was left to ponder his future within the “gang of six”.
Playing along with Coyle and Barbops was Scott Mason. Mason finished with a 43 (1 HI1) and still hasn’t been able to crack the top-5 this year. Had he not scored a 5 on hole-13…he still wouldn’t have finished in the top-5.
Barbops’ 41 (1 HI1) resulted in a 9th place finish, just 2 places behind Jeff Luke who overtook 1st place with a 39 (0 HI1). Barbops claimed he was in the position he wanted to be in going into the final two weeks. Luke also claimed he is in the position he prefers to be in: 1st. Luke played along side Conschafter and Remy (for the 2nd week in a row due to the “Random” rule). Conschafter matched Luke hole for hole and the two managed to score identical scores. The two “frienemies” were surprisingly unable to record a hole-in-one and played what they described a boring 18-holes. The two hope to get randomly paired again as they felt like they left some strokes on the course.
Remy was his usual self. No, he wasn’t wearing pleats, rather he sucked and shot a 46 (0 HI1) and finished in 20th place. Speculation is that he’s withholding some information about the league which is causing his game to suffer. Others feel he just sucks. Both may be true.
Next up was the pairing of Nick Keil, Chris Wilkinson and Mike Mondoux. Wilkinson lead the way, and really was the only member of this grouping worth mentioning. Wilkinson continued his impressively steady play, finishing with a 2nd place tie 38 (1 HI1). His impressive play has moved him in 3rd place overall and just 6.25 points behind 1st. I’m sure Wilkinson will be checking the league’s math and scoring in the final weeks to find any inaccuracies that may exist, but the league is confident that it’s records are clean.
Mondoux for the 2nd week in a row shot a 43 (0 HI1) and is desperately appealing to the PIH Board to revert the “Random Rule”. Mondoux finished in 12th place (Tie) and dropped 2 positions to 5th place in the overall standings. Since the “Random Rule took effect, Mondoux went from 2nd place to 5th and his average scored jumped by more than a stroke. If Mondoux doesn’t put together a decent round in week-9 he could create a hole so deep he puts himself out of contention the final week.
Keil scored his worse round of the year which is impressive since he has yet to break 40. He finished the day tied with fellow Getzville6 putter Tim Roesch, which is usually not a good sign, scoring a 48 (0 HI1). The two also scored identical front and back-9, shooting a 24 in each.
Paired with Roesch was the ever-improving Scott Wilson and the one-time-ever-good Joe LaBuda. Wilson continued his rise to the top as he shot a 2nd place (tie) 38 (1 HI1) and now sits in 4th place overall, just 14.25 points back of 1st. Meanwhile, LaBuda shot a 44 (1 HI1) and sits in a disappointing 18th place overall.
Wilson is looking to continue making a move in the next 2-weeks and is gunning to be in the lead group come week-10. On the other hand, LaBuda is looking forward to the end of the season as his performance continues to nosedive.
Also taking a nosedive is Frank DiJames who for the 2nd straight week entered the week as the hole-in-one leader and exited without recording a single ace. DiJames shot a 43 (0 HI1) and now sits in 2nd place in the hole-in-one race. So disgusted with his performance as of late, DiJames has told league officials that he will not be attending week-9 and is tentative for week-10. This was music to the ears of Jeff Hewett who is just one hole-in-one ahead of DiJames.
DiJames was paired with Jay Flemming and giddy Pat Holden. An uncomfortable Flemming persevered through the ogling of Holden and shot a 5th place (tie) 39 (1 HI1). Flemming could feel the desire of Holden but maintained focus (and little eye contact with Holden) and finished strong, something Holden wishes Jay would do with him. Holden floundered his way to a 41 (0 HI1).
Of all the week-8 pairings, the group of Scott VeRost, Mike Robinson and Joe Neeson provided little hope and even littler chance at finishing in the top-3. With a 44 (0 HI1), VeRost finished best within the group, followed by Robinson’s 45 (2 HI1) and then Neeson (45 0HI1). The poor performance for these 3 putters deserves no more mention.
And rounding out the pairings was the speedy two-some of Bryan An and Jeff Hewett. Hewett followed up his week-7 win with a 4th place 39 (2 HI1) while An shot a respectable-for-Bryan 44 (2 HI1). Hewett has clawed his way into the top-10 and now sits in 9th place overall. He is likely out of contention for the title but he does have a one ace lead in the total holes-in-one competition. An, he was out of contention before the season even started.
And with that, week-8 is in the books. With just 2-weeks to play, the last being a major (worth double), the title is still up for grabs for a good handful of players.
- Average Score: 42.435
- Holes-in-one Leader: 11 (Hewett)
- “Harald Watch” – Post-putt 43. Still as bad as ever.
- No putter had scored in the 50’s (the exception is Geniti who didn't putt...again)
- GI6 has claimed 4 of the 8 jackets in 2018.
- Getzville-6 has 0 jackets (they've only finished in the top-3 twice)